Nintendo put up this here special sign letting shareholders know where to go.

Nintendo held a shareholders meeting at its Kyoto headquarters today. Here are a few bits form a Q&A that CEO Satoru Iwata responded to at the end of the event, as summarized at this blog.

Q: Won't Nintendo continue with plans to release text book software?

A: This is being done through DS and has been well received in places where it's used, but there are many who are against the idea having game systems brought into the classroom. Brain Age did change some minds, though.

Q: Question about earnings for Nintendo's board members.

A: In line with lowered company earnings, earnings for board members dropped. Iwata was the only person to make over 100 million yen (precisely, 137 million yen).

Separate from the transcript at the blog, Bloomberg reported that last year, six directors topped the 100 million yen mark. Iwata's earnings dropped 50 million yen from last year.

Q: Wasn't the reaction to the Wii U bad?

A: Reactions directly from L.A. were extremely good. The majority of the overseas media offered congratulations to Iwata. The reaction differed greatly between those who covered the product at the show and those who just covered it online. In other words, the point is how Nintendo can convey the value of the product.

Q: Is it not difficult to recover a new product from a slump?

A: Iwata replied that Nintendo had low software output for the 3DS launch. They hope to not have this problem with the Wii U.

Q: Is Nintendo's HD development ability okay?

A: Regarding Zelda HD, Japanese developers said that it could not be replicated on other machines. It was made in a relatively short period, so Iwata feels that HD development will not be a problem.

From Nintendo's Wii U Zelda demo.

Q: Will core gamers accept Wii U?

A: Wii was not accepted by core gamers because they did not want to abandon their preferred control approach. Additionally, Wii did not use HD because HD cost performance at the time was low. Wii U makes it easier to use conventional controls. Also, the Wii U controller is not as big or heavy as it looks.

Q: Can't the 3DS be used as a controller for the Wii U?

A: It is possible technically. However, when doing this you lose the ability to go online (I'm not sure if Iwata is talking about Wii U or 3DS). Also, if you connect the two, players have to buy both system.